Crime in Uniform

Feral Tribune, Split, Croatia, September 14 1998

Mr. Consul, how were you informed about the death of the Italian citizen Riccardo Cetina, who was brutally beaten up by Sibenik policemen?

They phoned me from Sibenik hospital, from the pathology department. Riccardo Cetina had died two hours before that phone call. Doctor Ivanovic told us, over the phone, that they had the body, that it was covered with heavy bruises, that the man had been in a coma for a long time prior to that and that he had died. We immediately phoned the court in Sibenik, but there they told us to call the local police. The Police, on the other hand stalled for a few hours until they found a person who was authorized to discuss the incident. However, the very same morning our embassy received a fax from the Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The fax said that the Police had followed and arrested an Italian citizen. He allegedly resisted during the arrest, hitting and even biting policemen. Policemen were therefore obliged to use force. Then, the Italian citizen died in a hospital. It was written more-or-less like that; totally one-sided.

Was that all that was in the fax?

True, it was mentioned that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would lead or organize a special investigation in order to check the behavior of the Police. However, all that was too late, and it is obvious that the Police in Sibenik had made numerous omissions and violations of the regulations. They still do not understand that they have a duty to inform us immediately in cases like this one, instead of wasting time in internal communications within the Police and with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. What are consulates for if not to speed up resolution of similar problems! Riccardo Cetina was taken in a coma to the Sibenik Police at 2 a.m. which means that policemen had kept him for at least four hours. After that he was in a coma the whole day. Had we been informed about the case in time, we could have ensured a plane that would have taken Mr. Cetina to an Italian hospital.

Broken Rules

The rules specify that a consulate of the embassy must be informed about an arrest of a foreign citizen and about every significant incident. Naturally, it is not necessary to inform the consulate about a small traffic violation or something similar, but the event in Sibenik was definitely a significant incident since a person was taken into custody and later ended up in a coma in a hospital that is not capable to treat such serious cases. Besides, the Police must inform the consulate even if our citizen simply expresses desire to contact us.

In this case, there are not witnesses who would confirm that Mr. Cetina requested protection from the Italian consulate?

I am afraid that Mr. Cetina had no time to express the desire that the consulate be informed about his arrest, since he was beaten up on the spot. He arrived to a hospital in Sibenik in a coma. As far as I know, on Wednesday, September 2, about 10 p.m., Mr. Cetina was brought to City Hospital in Split. At the time, he was still in coma. Therefore, he was in coma in Sibenik for about twenty hours. He died at City Hospital in Split on Thursday September 3, at about 9 o'clock.

What would have you done had the Sibenik Police informed you immediately about an arrested Italian citizen who was in a coma?

We would have obtained an airplane from Italy and taken Mr. Cetina to an Italian hospital. We had done that previously and we can do that in case of far-away countries, let alone Croatia. Thus we would have had enough time to try something. However, the Police first beat up a man, than kept quiet, and finally tried to claim that Mr. Cetina was drunk. I have never heard of police beating up a drunk person.

Croatian Excuses

According to our information Riccardo Cetina never drank alcohol, and the witnesses who saw him immediately before the arrest claim that he was neither drunk nor seemed dangerous. True, they said that he behaved "funny". A medication for hypertension and a prescription for the medication issued by an Italian physician were found in his car. Thus, he cannot be considered to have been a violent person.

How will this beating with deadly consequences reflect on the overall relations between Italy and Croatia? The local press has recently quoted statements by Italian officials about alleged "intolerance with respect to Italians in Croatia" and a possibility of the introduction of Italian visas for Croatian citizens?

That, about intolerance with respect to Italians was certainly not said by us from the consulate nor by our colleagues from the embassy. That is what some Italian journalists wrote. We, in the consulate cannot discuss such political topics, but the Croatian Foreign Minister Mate Granic has already apologized to Mr. Lamberto Dini, over the phone, while Prime Minister Matesa has sent an apology to Romano Prodi. Our current demand is a change in the arrogant behavior of the Sibenik police. Our citizens had complained about their similar behavior prior to this incident.

Witnesses of Violence

A journalist escorted by a local "guide" talked with two youths who had seen policemen beating Riccardo Cetina. They saw a policeman sitting on Mr. Cetina, while the others were kicking him. The witnesses were two twenty-year-old men who were passing by on a motorcycle. The Police immediately chased them away from the spot where the beating was taking place, but they returned and watched from the side. We do not have their names. They were scared and we understand that. However, there must have been more vehicles and witnesses on that road...

Translated on 12/15/98